Sebastian Hartley with the “Suits” performs during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds.
Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
It was raunchy. It was funny. It was pure rock ’n’ roll. Durangoans officially launched Snowdown 2020 on Wednesday with the annual Fashion Do’s and Don’ts event.
“As a product of the ’50s, the theme this year was a bunch of flashbacks for me. That’s my era,” said Durango resident Terrie Larkin.
The show featured music from the ’50s to the ’80s, fishnets, fake breasts and in-line skates.
In one crowd favorite, “Hillary Clinton” dragged “Donald Trump” down the runway by a ball and chain as “Jailhouse Rock” blared in the background.
“Jimi Hendrix” owned the runway (and Hendrix’s classic sex appeal). Tina Turner and the Hot Flashes closed the show with a rendition of Tuner’s “Rollin’ on the River” that brought the crowd to its feet.
Linda Mannix puts makeup on Jeff Mannix as they get ready Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Khari Hatten, as Jimi Hendrix, gets ready to perform on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Donna Middleton, left, Susan Service, center, and Karla Sluis make up the Zumba Tribe as they get ready on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Performers get ready on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Cody Kopp gets ready to perform with the “Suits” on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
“Elton Joan,” center, “and the Bitches,” from left, Hazel Owen, Cyd Waddell, Margaret Leeder, get ready to perform on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
“French Kiss,” Lawrence Haddow, Erin Allen, Sara Walker, and Vanessa get ready to perform on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dave Imming, with the “Suits” gets ready to perform on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
“ZZ Topless” gets ready to perform on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Tim Walsworth, executive director of the Durango Business Improvement District, dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Daryl Pomberlin dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dean Fagner dressed as Angus Young, on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Linda Mannix, as “Jennifer Lopez Designed by Donetella,” and Jeff Mannix as “Gene Pool,” walk the catwalk as they start Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
“Elton Joan, and the Bitches” perform on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Peg Ochsenreiter and Karen Armstrong as “Rock Slide” perform during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Randee Halls and Jordan Lovato as “Rolling Stoners” perform during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
The Hot Stuff’s showed up for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Diane Purdy, Terrie Larkin and Petie Hunt as “SxRxRR” perform during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Margaret Leeder, as “Elton Joan” dances down the catwalk on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
The “B52’s” perform during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dave Huckins and Judy Hill perform “Whitehouse Rock with Donald and Hillary” during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people danced on Wednesday during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people danced on Wednesday during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
The Beatnik’s showed up for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Donna Middleton, Susan Service and Karla Sluis make up “The Zumba Tribe Presents: Roots of Rock n Roll,” during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Sebastian Hartley of the “Suits” perform during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people dressed up on Wednesday for Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
All the performers take to the stage at the end of Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts on Wednesday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lots of people danced on Wednesday during Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
•••
The party didn’t stop there. Snowdown started with a bang, holding 29 events its first day. Parents walked across heaps of Lego toys. Kids put on their own Follies event. And snow-goers competed in events ranging from the frivolous to the creative.
Frisbee ... with keg caps?The Balcony Bar & Grill hosted Snowdown’s annual Keg Cap Frisbee competition – the competitive sport of tossing keg caps into buckets to earn points. The winner, Ben Stewart, walked away with an impressive 85 points.
Leaning towers of cardsSnowdown isn’t just for the adults. Students took part in a fierce House of Cards competition to see which teams could build the tallest tower at Office Depot in Durango. The high school team that took first place in its division built a 13-story, 92-card, 32-inch-tall tower. Team S.O.L. R.O.C.K.R., the first initial of each participant’s name, took first place in the middle school division.
The art of butt dartsIn a derrière-oriented twist on a game of quarters, people tried to toss quarters into glasses using only their still-clothed butt cheeks at 11th Street Station. The winning team, The Presidents of the United States of Your Butt, successfully passed through obstacles like sitting on chairs and hopping – all while clenching the quarters. Then the final round, they packed as many quarters as possible between the cheeks and launched them into glasses.
Mckenzie Oury dances to the song “All About That Sumo Bass” on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Hadley and Huxley Miller perform the “Duck Song” on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dancers from Dance in the Rockies perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dancers from Dance in the Rockies perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dancers from Dance in the Rockies perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dancers from Bella Dance Juniors perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Cruz Bair and Eden Krokos perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Cruz Bair and Eden Krokos perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dancers with Dance in the Rockies perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Lyla Solecki sings “Heartbreaker” on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Arts Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Jordan Kitchens sings the song “Holiday” on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Art Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Dancers from DAC Apprentice Co. perform on Wednesday night during the Snowdown Kids Follies at the Durango Art Center. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Co-emcee Bryan Dear talks with teams during the Snowdown Spellebration on Wednesday night at the Henry Strater Theatre at the Strater Hotel. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
A full house showed up to watch teams compete in Rockin’ Snowdown Spellebration on Wednesday night at the Henry Strater Theatre at the Strater Hotel. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
2019 champions, Team Super Spellers, Jean Walter, left, Virginia Miller Cavanagh, center, and Linda Schwinghammer compete in Rockin’ Snowdown Spellebration on Wednesday night at the Henry Strater Theatre at the Strater Hotel. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Co-emcee Jennie Dear talks with teams during the Snowdown Spellebration on Wednesday night at the Henry Strater Theatre at the Strater Hotel. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Margaret Babiarz with Team StoneAge Rock Stars spells a word during the Rockin’ Snowdown Spellebration contest on Wednesday night at the Henry Strater Theatre at the Strater Hotel. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Eleven teams battle it out to be this year’s Rockin’ Snowdown Spellebration champion on Wednesday night at the Henry Strater Theatre at the Strater Hotel. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Team Chubby SpellChecker competes during the Rockin’ Snowdown Spellebration contest on Wednesday night at the Henry Strater Theatre at the Strater Hotel. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Cole Page, right, and Guy Leshem are cheered on during the Snowdown Bicycle Roller Races on Wednesday night at Irish Embassy Pub. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Sam Vickery, left, and Riley Jaber warm up before competing in the Snowdown Bicycle Roller Races on Wednesday night at Irish Embassy Pub. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Cole Page, left, and Guy Leshem compete as Chad Cheeney hosts the Snowdown Bicycle Roller Races on Wednesday night at Irish Embassy Pub. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Haley Roop, left, competes against Tracy Powers during the Snowdown Cribbage Tournament on Wednesday at the Durango Elks Lodge. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Players compete during the Snowdown Cribbage Tournament on Wednesday at the Durango Elks Lodge. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
Players compete during the Snowdown Cribbage Tournament on Wednesday at the Durango Elks Lodge. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald
A creative cocktail mix-offThere were some hard rock cocktails shaking at Snowdown’s 42nd annual bartenders contest at Starlight Lounge.
Syringes, white lines of powder, CBD extract, coffee liqueur and cherry-infused bourbon covered the bar as seven bartenders competed for first place using original creations.
In a first for the event, a third-place tie was decided with a beer chug-off. The winner was Mike Richardson with a Speedball cocktail.
The judges awarded second place to Art Aquayo, representing Taco Boy, for his tequila, cherry liqueur and lime juice drink deliciousness. While some spent months honing their recipe, Aquayo said he came up with the idea for his in the 30 minutes before the competition.
Reigning champion Jana Goldstein won first place in the 2020 Snowdown Bartender’s Competition at Starlight Lounge on Wednesday. Her cocktail creation, After Hours Cherry Sipper, featured cherry-infused bourbon and a second bourbon infused with cacao nibs and cinnamon.
Shannon Mullane/Durango Herald
For the second consecutive year, Jana Goldstein won first place and a $50 tab at the bar with her drink After Hours Cherry Sipper, inspired by her fall spent picking Hermosa cherries. Judges were wowed by her cocktail, which featured a cherry-infused bourbon and a second bourbon infused with cacao nibs and cinnamon. To carry the cherry-themed drink across the finish line, she topped it with cherries straight from Italy.
Goldstein said this was her 10th year entering the contest, and she can’t wait until next year’s event.
